1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to an apparatus and method for the preparation of a food product and, more particularly, relates to an apparatus and method for the automatic and continuous preparation of friable or fragile strips of a food product having a predetermined configuration, such as a bacon analog product.
In recent years considerable effort has been expended by the food processing industry in the development of new apparatuses and methods which are applicable to the production of various types of meat-like, protein-containing foods from various vegetable and animal protein sources. Primary consideration has been given to economics, inasmuch as the production of meat by animals is inefficient, whereas it is more efficient and economically feasible to directly utilize vegetable materials in the human diet to at least partially provide viable substitutes for meat. In order to meet the demand for such meat substitutes through the employment of readily available and generally inexpensive vegetable materials, there have been developed meat analogs which will provide synthetic products incorporating textures, appearances, and flavors which are equivalent to natural meat products.
In particular, the production of meat substitutes in the form of bacon analogs proved a promising facet of this technology, reaching the point wherein the preparation of bacon-like products constituted essentially of vegetable and animal protein sources became suitable for extensive and economically feasible commercial exposure.
Although some earlier U.S. Pat. Nos. described commercial bacon analogs or meat substitutes, such as Hartman 3,320,070, Corliss et al 3,930,033, and Leidy et al 3,840,677, further need for improvement for commercial success was apparent. Some of these did not fully meet the requirements in providing the necessary shelf life or crispness desired in bacon when positioned proximate a moist ingredient. Moreover, some of the meat substitutes are available to the consumer only in a semi-processed state, in effect, requiring additional preparation, such as cooking or frying, before being rendered suitable for consumption.
More recently, there has been developed a bacon analog product which is highly resistant to moisture and rough handling and which, in addition to affording an extended shelf life, encompasses therein all of the desirable properties and appearances of natural bacon although it is constituted of bacon analog formed from various vegetable and animal protein sources. Furthermore, the bacon analog product is available to the consumer in a ready-to-eat condition, thus obviating the need for further processing, such as cooking or frying, and thereby rendering it highly attractive from a consumer viewpoint. This bacon analog product and process is described in copending U.S. patent application No. 622,272; filed Oct. 10, 1975, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,104,415; for Bacon Analog Product and Process, and which is assigned to the common assignee for this application.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Although numerous apparatuses and processes have in the past been proposed and developed for the production and processing of various types of food products, such as potato chips as disclosed in Pringle U.S. Pat. No. 2,286,644, Crommelijnck 3,736,862 and Baird 3,911,805; or enchiladas and the like as disclosed in Jimenez 3,901,137 and Baird 3,911,805; no apparatus or method has hitherto been developed which will provide for the automatic, rapid and continuous preparation of essentially ready-to-eat friable or fragile strips of a food product of predetermined configuration, such as a bacon analog or the like, from a slab or bulk source of the semi-processed food product material, and which is adapted to meet the demands of mass marketing and consumer appeal in an economic manner.